Sky Battles, Player Search System and more new Pokemon revealed.
Here at the Nintendo Developer Roundtable, E3 Pokemon enthusiasts and press got a closer look at the new Pokemon types announced during the Nintendo Direct event.
Pokemon X and Y have already introduced new starters Chespin (Grass-type), Fennekin (Fire-type), Froakie (Water-type). Today, players saw Vivillon (a flying/insect-type butterfly) and Noivern (a flying/dragon-type) for the first time and learned more about the new Fairy type of Pokemon that’s super effective against dragons. The games, developed by Game Freak for Nintendo 3DS, are due out worldwide on October 12, allowing everyone to battle and trade with each other from day one.
Tidbits revealed in the roundtable include:
- The game is in seven languages – English, Japanese, French, Spanish, German, Italian and Korean. Localization turned 800,000 Japanese characters into 1.4 million English words.
- A new communication system called PSS (Player Search System) allows players to find and battle other Pokemon players as Friends, Acquaintances and Passersby. Everyone starts as a Passerby and becomes an Acquaintance after the first battle. They can be elevated to Friends after that or saved as Favorites for more easy battles and trades. PSS finds players through either local wireless connections or through the Internet to connect to the global audience. The global trade service will also still be available.
- Converting the Pokemon 2D sprites to 3D involved dissecting character sketches down to intimate anatomical details (like what it looks like inside the Pokemon’s mouth.) The increased detail makes the 3D modeling in wireframes and textures much easier. A new shading technique and animations cap it off.
- The Nintendogs-like Pokemon-Amie includes a feature from the 3DS camera and motion sensor to increase the feel of communication with your Pokemon – they might mimic your motions if you lean back or tilt your head a certain way. The relationship building also contributes to more critical hits in battle and other strategic advantages.
- New battle types include Horde Encounters, which make it harder to capture wild Pokemon because you must to defeat more than one to win the battle. There are also Sky Battles for flying Pokemon that unlock specific air attacks. Non-flying Pokemon with the levitate ability can also join Sky Battles.
- They are not yet confirming the new number of Pokemon.
- Fairy type is meant to balance out the over-powered Dragon type, it is the first new type in 14 years.
- They are exploring ways to allow players to transfer Pokemon from previous games.
- They are not exploring virtual console releases on Wii U for Red/Blue.
- They are trying to make important details in battles more surface level, to make it easier in players.
- Character customization includes hairstyle and outfits. This will help with Player Search System identification for multiplayer.
